Same Same. Marthe Jocelyn. Illustrated by Tom Slaughter. Toronto, ON: Tundra Books, 2009. 24 pp., hardcover, $17.99. ISBN 978-0-88776-885-9. Subject Heading: Set theory-Juvenile literature. Preschool / Ages 1-4. Review by Barb Taylor. **** /4 Reviewed from Final Pages.

Same Same is a delightful picture book for young children. It introduces grouping objects according to shapes, colours, size, number and actions.

     Each page holds features a picture that is repeated on the next page under a different category. The first page features “round things.” One of the three round things is a tambourine. The next page is captioned “things that make music” and, along with a bird and guitar, there is the tambourine from the previous page.

     The illustrations are in strong bold primary colours. The artist combines geometrical forms to create an object. The text is simple, again focused on the images grouped on the page. I did have a bit of trouble reading pages where black print is superimposed on dark blue and green backgrounds.

     Teachers and parents and children will enjoy pointing out shapes, groupings and trying to remember which picture was featured on the previous page. Children can enjoy this book independently as the sorted images determine the text.

     This book would be a lovely addition to a preschool or home library.

Highly Recommended.

A teacher, Barb Taylor is now an MLIS student at the University of Western Ontario.

NEXT REVIEW |TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THIS ISSUE - December 5, 2008.